Sometimes a road block is the universe's way of steering you in the right direction

I have a friend whose careers – plural – have consisted of being a professional baseball player, stock broker, and high school teacher. I find this relevant to intent as each of these careers necessitated the acquisition of specific education, skill sets, and certifications. Each career also required that he set his sites on a particular end result and devise a plan to achieve each one. More amazingly, each of these careers was borne out of desire. How many of us can say we have gone about our careers with such clarity and determination?

Businessweek online had an interesting article on how recent MBAs, unable to find a job, are starting their own business. (Find article at: http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/ content/jun2009/ bs20090618_346720.htm?chan=bschools_bschool+index+ page_top+stories) The article profiled one student nearing graduation who had applied for multiple management positions ranging from not-for-profits to the music industry but without success. The student, however, according to the article’s author, Alison Damast (http://www.businessweek.com/ bios/Alison_Damast.htm), is an “aspiring singer and songwriter”. In the end, she opted for starting her own record label. What is intriguing about this is that the noted student obviously possessed, at the start, and before entry into any MBA program, an innate interest and skill in music. Without knowing entirely how this particular student went about her job hunt, and only with the information at hand, nonetheless it asks her motive for seeking out a career in an industry or with an organization that may not be in a position to foster her true self.

Believe me when I write that I am not blind to understanding the possible motives for wanting to find a job to earn a living or pay back student loans. I’ve done it, many of us have done it, and have done it to ensure our survival. Hey, paychecks are important. But, and this is a big one, each time I have set my intent on finding the right fit for my talents and abilities at that given moment, opportunities have appeared, seemingly from out of nowhere, and with little more than an intentional prompt. As for my friend who set his intent on becoming a baseball player/stock broker/school teacher, the student in the article, not finding a "job" may have actually led her to her intended career after all.